Poker has always played with a package of 52 cards in four different colors- clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades, and this is with the amounts of Ace, king, queen, Jack, 10, 9,8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1 per color. Poker game is divided into several betting rounds in which players bet into a common bank (pot) and receive or exchange cards, the number of rounds depends on the specific poker variant. In casinos and card-rooms, the Dealer does not play. However, when there is a shortage of Dealers or in home games, games may be self-dealt. In self-dealt games, the deal changes each hand in a clockwise direction. In games with a Dealer, a round disc called the "Dealer Button" moves clockwise from player to player with each hand. The Button marks which player would be the dealer if the game was self-dealt.

 

Texas Hold'em is one of the most popular variant of poker and is played by players from al over the world. Almost all poker tournaments are played with this variation of poker.

 

There are no Antes required from all players in Texas Holdem poker game, instead, there are two forced bets called Blinds. Games begin with the two players to the left of the Dealer or putative dealer (The Button) putting a predetermined amount of money (the Blinds) into the pot before any cards are dealt, thus ensuring that there is something to play for on every hand. In tournaments this amount is increased in a time pattern in order to ensure the elimination of players.

Most often, the Small Blind (the player on the immediate left of the dealer) puts up half the minimum bet, and the player on his left (the Big Blind) puts up the full minimum bet. This is called "posting the blinds."

Each player is dealt two cards, face down (the Hole Cards). He keeps their denominations a secret, usually emphasised by shielding the cards with one hand while turning a corner of them up.

The object of the game is to combine these two cards with the five cards which will eventually be laid out in front of the Dealer ("the Board") to make the best poker hand (see "Hand Order") among the players. This hand may consist of the two Hole Cards and three of the Board, one Hole Card and four of the Board or - very occasionally - neither of the Hole Cards and just the Board.
The holder of this hand wins the Pot (the accumulation of all bets).

This takes place immediately after the Deal. The first player to speak is the player to the left of the Big Blind.

The First To Speak (on the immediate left of the Big Blind or Straddler) has three options: Call, Raise or Fold.

To Call, the player places a bet that is equal to the Big Blind or Straddle.

To Raise, the player adds an additional amount. The size of this amount varies with the type of game being played: in Limit Games, it is a fixed amount and may be Capped (limited) after a set number of rounds.

In Pot Limit games it cannot be larger than the amount currently in the Pot.

In No Limit games, it may be any amount, limited only by the number of chips in front of the player.

To Fold, the player places his cards face-down in front of him and pushes them towards the middle of the table where they constitute the Muck. When any card touches the Muck it is deemed to have been folded. That player can take no further part in the hand and any bets he has made are forfeit.

Subsequent players have the same three options, plus the option to ReRaise (or ReReRaise). A ReRaise must equal at least the size of the last Raise.

After the first betting round, the dealer discards the top card of the deck. This is called Burning. The dealer then places the next three cards face up on the table. These cards are called the Flop.

This round and all subsequent betting rounds start with the first player to the dealer's left still in the hand. In addition to Calling, Raising or Re-Raising, players now have the option to Check - staying in the hand without betting until it is their turn to speak again.

Once a bet has been made a player may choose to Call for that amount or Raise (or ReRaise, where applicable). If he chooses to do neither, he must Fold. Thus, at the end of the round, all players will have put in an equal amount of bets.

 Exception is when a player has an inadequate amount of chips in front of him; in that case, he may go All-In (betting the total amount he has) and one or more Side Pots are established, limiting the amount he may win to an accumulation of equal amounts from the Main Pot from players who contributed to that pot.

After the completion of the Second Betting Round, a further card is Burned.(discarded) and the next card exposed and added to the Board. This the Turn card.

In Limit games, the fixed amount doubles and remains at that amount for the final round of betting.

After the completion of the Third Betting Round, a further card is Burned and the fifth and final community card is exposed and added to the Board. This is the River card.

This precedes the Show-Down, when the challenged player must reveal his cards.

If two or more players have the same hand, the next highest card in the player's hand (the Kicker) is used to break the tie. If there is no kicker card (the tied players have used both Hole Cards, or have the same hand), the pot is split between them.

Players wishing to Play the Board (relying on the five exposed cards to make the best hand) must announce that this is what they are doing before throwing their cards away; otherwise they relinquish all claim to the pot.

Omaha poker is mainly played with high hands only, but the high-low split version is also popular. Omaha High-low (aka "Omaha Hi-Lo", "Omaha hi/lo", "Omaha high/low" etc.). In Europe Omaha limit high-only is dominant. In the US, the HiLo game is gaining in popularity. Before playing, it's best to clear up the rules so as not to get confused later.

Omaha Holdem poker rules are based on Texas Holdem with these main differences:

·         Players are dealt four pocket cards.

·         Player MUST use two pocket cards and three community cards to make the best possible poker hand.

·         There can be a maximum of 10 players.

When playing omaha poker each player is dealt four cards face down (the pocket cards). Then the first betting round begins.

Rounds are the same as in Texas Holdem:

·         Preflop - Two cards are dealt to every player face down, starting with the small blind.

·         The Flop - the dealer lays out the first three community cards in the center of the table.

·         The Turn - A fourth card is dealt face up in the middle of the table.

·         The River - A fifth and final card is dealt face up in the middle of the table.

The player with the best 5-card hand wins.

Omaha High-Low is a popular version of Omaha poker game. The basic rules are like in Omaha Holdem, which is based on Texas Holdem, but there are some differences which makes the game active and interesting.

The pot is split between the Hi hand and the Lo hand. The same cards may be used in declaring Hi and Lo.

One hand may win both the Hi and the Lo halves of the pot. A frequent example of this is "the Wheel", consisting of an Ace-2-3-4-5.

If there is no qualifying hand for Lo, the best Hi hand wins the whole pot.

In the division of the pot, the Hi hand receives any odd chip.

This means that the winning low hand can only contain cards of the value under 9. Hence in Flop games, the Flop must contain three cards of the value of 8 or lower.

In order to qualify for the low half of the pot, the low hand must be 8, 7, 6, 5, 4 or lower. That's why this game is called "8 or better", or simply "Omaha 8".

Interesting moment of Omaha High-Low rules is that straights and flushes do not count against you when qualifying for Low. Also you are permitted to use different cards in your hand for the High side and different cards for the Low side or the same cards for both the High and Low sides. In a split pot, any leftover odd chip goes to the High side of the pot. A few casinos play with a 9-low qualifier instead, but this is not very popular.

Seven card stud is the most popular version of stud poker, and is played between two and eight players. Every player is dealt a total of seven cards, three of them face down, and the other four face up.

The aim is to make your best five card hand using any combination of the seven cards you are dealt.

Ante
7 card stud is normally played with an ante that is approximately 1/5 of the low limit bet size. Every player must ante up before the hand begins. The ante does not count towards any future bets.

Bring in
After the initial deal when every player has 1 card showing, the person with the lowest card must "bring in", which means he must place 1/2 of the low limit bet size in the pot. If two or more players share the lowest card, the one closest to the dealer's left side must bring in. This bet counts as your first round bet, so as long as nobody raises, you won't have to place any more money in the pot to see the next card.

There are five rounds of betting. In fixed limit seven card stud, all bets and raises must be equal to either the low limit, or high limit bet size, depending on what round it is. In the first two rounds, all bets and raises must be equal to the low limit bet size. In the third, fourth, and fifth rounds, all bets must be equal to the high limit bet size. If, for example, you're playing 3-6 7 card stud poker, all bets in the first two rounds will be in increments of 3 dollars, and all bets in the last three rounds will be in increments of 6 dollars. A maximum of 3 raises are allowed per betting round.

Two cards are dealt face down to every player, followed by another card face up. The player with the lowest card must bring in, by betting 1/2 of the low limit bet. He may choose to raise by betting the full low limit bet. Play proceeds clockwise around the table, with each player choosing to fold, call, or raise. All bets and raises must be equal to the low limit bet size.

 A fourth card is dealt face up to every player. The player with the highest hand showing (at this point, the highest possible would be a pair of aces) is the first to act. He may choose to fold, check, or bet. If two or more players are tied for the highest hand, the one closest to the dealer's left will be the first to act. Play proceeds clockwise around the table as before. If a player is showing a pair at this point, then he and all the other players have the option to bet either the low limit bet size or the high limit bet size. Otherwise, all bets and raises must be equal to the low limit bet size.

 A fifth card is dealt face up to every player. Play proceeds as in the previous round, with the highest hand betting first, except now all bets and raises must be equal to the high limit bet size.

A sixth card is dealt face up to every player. Play proceeds as in the previous round. All bets and raises must be equal to the high limit bet size.

A seventh and final card is dealt face down to every player. Play proceeds as in the previous round. All bets and raises must be equal to the high limit bet size. In the rare event that all eight players remain in the hand at this point, there would not be enough cards for each player to receive another one. If that occurs, instead of every player receiving a card face down, a single card is placed in the middle of the table face up which every player is free to use in the making of their best 5 card hand.

Anyone who has not folded after the last round of betting will now have the option of showing their hand in hopes of taking down the pot. When playing 7 Card Stud the person who bet last is the first to show their hand, and then it proceeds clockwise from there, with each remaining player either choosing to show their hand, or muck it. Often times a player will muck their hand if they aren't going to win the pot, and don't want their opponents to see what they played.

Five Card Stud is played very similar to 7 Card Stud. The obvious difference is that each player receives; you guessed it, 5 cards. The first is dealt face down with the four following cards dealt face up

You are dealt one down card, hole card, and one up card. The player showing the lowest card by suit (highest - spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs - lowest) must bring-in the first round of betting with a forced bet of half the lower limit. Don't worry too much about who goes first, etc., as the software will prompt the player who is to begin the betting. The next player to act, left of the first better, can 'complete' the bet, call or fold.

After the initial betting round, three more up cards are delivered, with a round of betting after each card. In our 5 Stud game, a bet and three raises are allowed. The final raise is capped and the only options you have are to call or fold at this point.

The stakes being offered at the particular table determines the limit or maximum bet on any player's turn. For example, at a 1/2 table, the limit on any bet is $1 on the first two betting rounds and $2 on the final two betting rounds. We allow one bet and 3 raises in our card room.

The betting action of the first two rounds is set at the lower limit of the table structure. The exception of this rule is when a player shows a pair after the flop. All players have the option to bet the higher limit for the second round of betting. If a player does bet the higher limit, subsequent bets must also be at the higher limit. The last two rounds of betting are at the higher limit.

The first person to show their hand is the last person to show strength with a bet or raise. All 5 cards are used at showdown. The player holding the best poker hand wins the pot. Should multiple hands tie, the pot is split with any odd amount going to the player nearest the 'D' button's left.

 

It’s the simplest variation of poker, and often the first variant learned by most players

. Five cards dealt to each player

. Betting round 1, beginning with player to left of big blind

. Each player can change from 0 to 5 cards

 

.Betting round 2, beginning with player to left of button

 

. Showdown (if necessary)

As soon as all players have paid their blinds, each player is dealt five cards face down; this is followed by the first betting round where all players – starting with the first player to the left of the big blind – can decide whether they want to ‘fold’, ‘call’ or ‘raise’.

After the first betting round all players may now decide, whether they would prefer to keep all their cards, or whether they would rather try and improve them by exchanging up to five of them.

On a $ 5/$ 10 table you may bet $ 5 in the first two betting rounds and up to $ 10 in the last two. In each round players may bet once and raise three times (bet, raise, re-raise and again re-raise or ‘cap’).

After three rounds of betting the so-called cap is reached, this means that in this betting round, no more betting can be done. In this case the next card is dealt – or if it was the last round – the showdown begins.

In a game of Five Card Draw Poker, up to 10 players may participate. At the very beginning of each game, the two players who sit next to the dealer (the person marked with the dealer button) have to place their blinds.

 This happens before the cards are dealt. The blinds are there to make sure that there is money in the pot so every winning hand can actually win money.

Since the dealer button moves on clockwise from player to player with each round of the game, every player has to pay a blind at some point during the game. The player to the left of the dealer places the ‘Small Blind’, the player to his left has to place the ‘Big Blind’ which is usually twice the amount of the small blind.